Non-refillable pouring closure for liquor bottles

ABSTRACT

A non-refillable pouring closure for liquor bottles is provided with a check valve disposed interiorly of the bottle neck. This valve includes a ball cage within which a ball is adapted to seal the opening in the valve seat defined by the cage to prevent spurious liquids to be poured into the bottle following removal of the legitimate contents of the bottle. The ball is adapted to be advantageously unseated when it is desired to pour the legitimate liquor in the bottle for consumption upon tilting of the bottle to the desired pouring angle. Guide ribs on the interior of the cage assures proper movement of the ball therein between the ball valve opening and closing positions. A pouring spout or cowl extends upwardly and outwardly from the ball cage to facilitate pouring of the bottle contents. The cowl and the cage define a space within which a guard plate is adapted to be disposed. This guard plate permits pouring of the liquor from the bottle but, at the same time, prevents foreign objects from being inserted into the cowl with a view towards unseating the ball in an effort to refill the bottle with a spurious liquor. A locking band engages with the open end of the bottle neck and surfaces of the cowl to secure the cowl and ball cage to the bottle neck. A removable closure cap containing a liner is adapted to close the bottle and particularly seal off the upper open end of the cowl. This closure cap is removed when it is desired to pour or drain the liquor contents of the bottle.

United States Patent 9 Unger I [mi 3,794,202 Feb. 26, 1974 Primary ExaminerStanley H. Tollberg Assistant Examiner-Larry Martin' Attorney, Agent, or F irm--l (ane, Dalsimer, Kane, Sul livan & Kurucz [57] ABSTRACT A non-refillable pouring closure for liquor bottles is provided with a check valve disposed interiorly of the bottle neck. This valve includes a ball cage within which a ball is adapted to seal the opening in the valve be advantageously unseated when it is desired to pour the legitimate liquor in the bottle for consumption upon tilting of the bottle to the desired pouring angle. Guide ribs on the interior of the cage assures proper movement of the ball therein between the ball valve opening and closing positions. A pouring spout or cowl extends upwardly and outwardly from the ball cage to facilitate pouringof the bottle contents. The cowl and the cage define a space within which a guard plate is adapted to be disposed. This guard plate permits pouring of the liquor from the bottle but, at the same time, prevents foreign objects from being inserted into the cowl with a view towards unseating the ball in an effort to refill the bottle with a spurious liquor..A locking band engages with the open end of the bottle neck and surfaces of the cowl to secure the cowl and ball cage to the bottle neck. A removable closure cap containing a liner is adapted to close the bottle and particularly seal off the upper open end of the cowl. This closure cap is removed when it is desired to pour or drain the liquorcontents of the bottle.

16 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTED FEBZG I974 SHEEI 1 OF 3 INVENTOR- 424 0. 0/1/ y ATTORNEYS PAIENTED FEB28 I974 SHEET 3 0F 3 2 MM W0 m BY 44, ga

ATTO R N EYS NON-REFILLABLE POURING CLOSURE FOR LIQUOR BOTTLES CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED PRIOR ART PATENTS This application relates to non-refillable pouring devices of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,018,910,

granted Jan. 30, 1962 and 3,063,589,-granted Nov. 13,

' possess the following disadvantages either individually or collectively:

l. the pourers were not effectively tamperproof; and

in the case of the pourer of U.S. Pat. No.-

3,063,589, the bottle may be refilled by inverting a second bottle containing a spurious liquor over the threaded section of the cowl;

2. the pouring rate of such pourers was below thedesired level;

3. the bottles were not effectively sealed by such pourers; and in connection with the pourer of U.S. Pat. No. 3,063,589, a small percentage of the bottles developed leakage at the seal between the glass bottle lip and the flange of the ball cage.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A principal object of this invention is to provide a 5. after pouring is completed and the bottom is tilted back to a vertical position, no, dribbling of the liquor occurs down the outside of the pouring device; v I

6. the pourer employs a minimum number of parts each individually simple to manufacture and assemble thereby rendering it feasible to provide such a'pouring device at relatively low cost;

7. the pouring device is adapted to be locked onto the bottle neck securely so that it cannot be removed without visable damage to the component parts;

and leakage of the liquor will not occur from the sealed interfaces even when the bottle is inverted or subjected to temperature changes during storage or shipment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL vIEw OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a liquor bottle having assembled-thereon a pouring closure of this invention; 7

FIG. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of. the pouring closure and the neck of the bottle;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the upper part of the liquor bottle and the pouring closure in which aguard plate is integral with the valve cage;

0 valve cage.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to FIG. 2 showing the bottle tilted and the ball valve unseated to permit pouring of the liquor contents;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken alongthe line 55 of FIG. 4 with certain parts broken away and removed for clarity; and

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of a modified closure in which the guard plate is separately formed and adapted to rest on' the shoulder on the top of the DETAILED DESCRIPTION A bottle 10 containing the desired legitimate liquor is provided with a non-refillable pouring closure 6 which permits drainage or pouring of the liquor while, at the same time, prevents filling of the bottle with a spurious liquor. The bottle It) incorporates a neck finish at the top which is designed with a bulged contour l8 suitable for application of a rolled-on, aluminum locking band 5. On the top surface of the bottleneck finish are located two or more, and preferably. nine or l2, locking lugs 11 circumferentially spaced so that they engage or interlock with the complementary spaces between teeth 12 on the bottom of a cowl 4. These teeth 12 are angularly spaced around the base of the cowl 4 so that they engage the glass locking lugs 11 regardless of the angle of rotation of the cowl with respect to the bottle neck locking lugs 11. The uppermost section of the bottle neck consists of a flat plane 9 extending from the inside neck diameter 13 to the locking lug area 11 which provides a smooth surface for sealing the bottom surface 14 of the flange 28 of ball valve cage 3 to the bottle bym 'eans of two or more circular ribs 15 which in section (FIG. 2) have the shape of crows-feet pointedrinwardly. By this means a liquid tight seal is created when the aluminum locking band 5 is pressed downwardly over the pourer and rolled onto the'bottom surface 8 of the bulged contour l8 of thebottle neck. The inside bore or neck diameter 13 of the bottle 10 is molded so that it will form a very snug compression fit with the outside diameter 26 of the ball valve cage 3.

The most simple and reliable means for preventing refilling-of the bottle 10 is by means of a ball 24 which functions as acheck valve when cooperating with the seat 16 located in the ball valvecage 3. In order to achieve a liquid tight seal between this seat 16 and the ball 24, the seat is molded onto the ball cage 3 so that it isindependent of the inner wall of the base 22 of the cage 3 and so that a narrow annular gap 19 exists between the'seat and the cage. This technique prevents warpage or distortion of the circular seat 16 in the molding operation. Furthermore, the seat 16 is tapered 20 inwardly in the downward direction at an angle which provides'the maximum contact surface between ball 24 and seat 16. For example, with a ball diameter of .460 inches and a seat diameter of .430 inches, the included angle between sides of the tapered seat 20 should be nearly 40. In addition, the relative dimensions of the ball 24, the internal diameter of the cage 3 defined by the cage side wall 17 and the ball seat 16 are sized and selected so that the circular area of opening 23 is very nearly equal to the annular area between the ball 24 and the internal cage sidewall 17. This dimensioning ratio produces the most rapid liquor pouring rate obtainable by any given cage side wall diameter. 1

The specific gravity of the ball 24 is preferably greater than the specific gravity of the liquor to be dispensed so that the ball will remain in its seat and will not float particularly when an attempt is made to refill the bottle by adding or forcing a spurious liquor into the pourer. In this connection, a ball 24 whose specific gravity is approximately twice that of the liquor is preferred, since it has been found that a ball of this specific gravity will, when the bottle is inverted into a pouring position, roll toward guard plate 31 (FIG. 4) or plate 31a (FIG. 6) and remain motionless in the turbulent stream of liquor flowing out of the bottle and air flowing inwardly. A ball whose specific gravity is appreciably less than twice that of the liquor may bounce in the turbulent stream of liquor and restrict the rate of flow of liquor from the closure 6. A ball 24 of the required specific gravity may be fabricated from glass but the preferred material is plastic into which high density mineral matter has been incorporated.

In order to maintain the ball 24 centrally within the cage 3 and, at the same time, permit longitudinal movement therein, four circumferentially spaced, vertical ribs are integrally molded in the side wall 17 of the cage 3. These ribs 25 project inwardly from the cage side wall 17 and are sized so that when the cage is forced into the neck 13 of the bottle 10, the clearance between the ribs 25 and the ball 24 will be as small as practicable and yet will permit the ball to roll freely. In this way the ball 24 is permitted to roll freely away from its seat 16 when the bottle 10 is inverted for pouring, and thereafter the ball will quickly return to its seat when the bottle is tilted back.

The cage 3 is adapted to extend across the opening of the bottle neck' 13; and towards this end, the outer cage wall 26 is dimensioned to fit as snugly as possible into the bottle neck but not so tight that the cage ribs 25 collapse inwardly to seize the ball 24. For easy inser tion into the bottle neck, the lower outside end 27 of the cage 3 is tapered inwardly. The top of the cage 3 terminates in a radially extending flange 28, the lower face 14 of which is provided with two or more circular sealing ribs 15 as previously described, which form a liquid tight seal on the plane surface 9 of the bottle neck when the aluminum locking band 5 is pressed downward firmly and rolled onto the bottom surface 8 of the bulged contour 18 of the bottle neck.

A cowl 4 is fitted onto the ball cage 3 and performs the function of a pouring spout 30. This cowl 4 defines an interior space within whichaguard plate 31 is disposed for purposes of providing protection against tam pering with the ball 24 as, for example, by means of a wire or the like in an attempt to unseat the ball and render filling of the bottle possible. The circular guard plate 31 may be molded integrally within the interior space of the cowl 4 and supported by two or more webs 32 which extend radially from the guard plate and downward from the inner surface of the top of the cowl 33 to the inner side wall 34 of the cowl. With this construction the guard plate 31 is located centrally and directly under the neck of the pouring spout and its maximum diameter is limited to the inside-diameter of the neck 35 of the pouring spout due to the limitation of the diameter of the molding tool which forms the top surface 36 of the guard plate and which must be withdrawn through the neck 35 of the pouring spout in the molding process. Alternately, a circular guard plate 31a, see FIG.6, may be constructed spearately and inserted into the interior space of the cowl 4. In this alternate design corresponding parts are similarly numbered with accompanying letter a. The diameter of the guard plate 31a may be 50 percent or more greater than the diameter of the neck 35 of the pouring spout 30. This neck of the pouring spout 30 and the top surface 36 of the guard plate 31 or 31a is fixed by the vertical dimension of the webs 32 which extend downward from the inner surface 33 of the top of the cowl 4. By positioning the guard plate 31 or 310 in this manner, equal areas for passage of liquor outward are maintained above and below the guard plate. The annular area 38 between the outer edge of the guard plate 31 or 31a and the inside wall 34 of the cowl 4 is sized so that this liquor passageway is at least as great as the area 23 of the circular ball seat 16 in orderto provide for maximum rate offlow of liquor from the closure.

The guard plate 31 or 31a also serves the function of restricting the longitudinal motion of the ball 24 whereby the ball is always maintained cradled within the confines of the ribs 25 of the cage 3. The longitudinal motion of the ball 24 is restricted by the axially extending post 40 extending downwardly from the center of the bottom of the guard plate 31 or 31a. This post 40 restricts the motion of the ball 24 so that it can not come into contact with the bottom of the guard plate 41 and develop excessive turbulence which would reduce pouring rate of the liquor stream and yet allows the ball 24 to roll free of its seat 16 when the bottle is inverted into a pouring position.

.In the case of using the separately constructed guard plate 31a, three or more posts 42' extend downward from the bottom surface of this plate. The longitudinal dimension of these posts 42 is selected to position the guard plate 31a midway between the base 43 of the pouring spout 30 and the, upper surface of the flange 44 on the ball cage 3. The bottom of these posts 42 rest on the upper surface of the flange 44 so that the guard plate 31a is firmly maintained betweenthe bottom of the webs 32 and the upper surface of the flange 44.

The cowl-4 and the cage 3 containing the ball 24 are interlocked by a cooperative engagement of a circular rib- 45 extending upward from the top surface 44 of the ball cage flange 28 with circular recess 46 in the inside wall 34 of the cowl 4.

The flange 47 on the cowl 4 includes one or more circular, sharply pointed ribs 48 which form a liquid tight seal against the top surface of the flange 44 of the ball cage 3. When the closure is inserted into the neck of the bottle and the aluminum locking band 5 is pressed downward firmly prior to rolling it onto the. bottom surface 8 of the bulged contour 18 of the bottle, the circular ribs 48 of the cowl 4 bite" into the softer plastic of the flange 44 of the ball cage 3 to form a leak-proof seal between the cowl and ball cage.

Appended from the cowl 4 is a skirt 50 under which are located the aforementionedteeth 12 which engage the locking lugs ll on the neck finish of the bottle.

When the closure is inserted into the neck of the bottle and the aluminum locking band 5 is pressed downward prior to rolling onto the bottle neck, this engagement occurs. Thereafter, the entire closure is held firmly in place and will not rotate when the cap 2 is screwed onto the threaded section 51 of the cowl 4.

The uppermost section of the spout 30 on the cowl 4 is provided with a flared lip 52 which, when the bottle is inverted into a pouring position, delivers a stream of liquor so that it can be directed easily into a small diameter vessel such as a jigger. Furthermore, this flared lip 52 cuts off the flow of liquor neatly when the bottle is returned to an upright position and thereby prevents dribbling of the liquor down the spout 30 and onto the cowl 4.

After inserting the closure into the neck of the bottle and locking it onto the bottle neck as previously described, the cap 3 provided with threads 53 is screwed onto the companion threads 51 located on the outside diameter of the cowl 4. This cap is fitted with a plasticfaced pulp-backed cap liner 1 in the usual manner. As the cap is screwed onto the cowl 4, the surface of the liner 1 first contacts the flared lip 52 of the spout 30 and forms a liquid tight seal at this point. Affixed to the inner wall 54 above the threaded section of the cap 3 are three or more, and preferably six, vertical ribs 55. Inasmuch as the cap liner 1 is compressible and the flared lip 52 is flexible, the cap 3 can be tightened onto the threaded section 51 of the cowl 4 until the vertical ribs 55 contact and Press firmly against the top surface 56 of the cowl.

It will be observed that construction and arrange.

ment, as illustrated and described, not only facilitate pouring and sealing of the bottle, but-in addition, preclude tampering with the closure so as to prevent refilling. Thus, it effectively ensures against the introduction of adulterants, diluents, and unauthorized re-use of the bottle. In this regard, tampering to unseat the ball 24 is precluded.

Naturally, a variety of materials could be used in the manufacture of the closure assembly described above. In a successful embodiment of the present invention, the ball, 24 was fabricated from polystyrene into which high density mineral matter is incorporated to give the desired specific gravity to the ball; the cage 3 from polyethylene which provides a tight seal in combination with the ball since this plastic is relatively soft and also can form a snug compressible fit into the neck of the bottle; the cowl 4 from polypropylene since this plastic is both tough and flexible and can form a seal at the pourer lip 52-with the cap liner 1; and the cap 2 from polystyrene. A

Although somewhat preferred embodiments of the invention have been disclosed and described in detail herein, it should be understood that the invention is in no sense limited thereby and its scope is to be detersaid valve seat defining an opening through which the liquor in the bottle is adapted to flow when the bottle is inverted, and a ball in the cage adapted to be seated on the valveseat to close the opening when the bottle is in an upright condition and be unseated when the bottle is inverted to permit flow of liquor through said opening;

a cowl associated with the cage and adapted to extend upwardly and outwardly from the neck of the bottle, the cowl having an upper pouring spout having a reduced diameter through which liquor is adapted to be dispensed, the cowl defining an interior space;

a guard plate in said space and comprising a disc of predetermined diameter relative to the diameter of the pouring spout and sufficiently smaller relative to certain surfaces of the cowl to permit flow of liquor therebetween when the bottle is inverted, means for centering the guard plate within said space for contributing in providing predetermined volume in the cowl on each side of the guard plate disc, and limiting means for limiting the movement of the ball in the cage from a seating position and unseated position.

2. The invention in accordance with claim ll wherein a number of ribs extends longitudinally and inwardly from the cage side wall for purposes of regulating the path of travel of the ball.

3. The invention in accordance with claim 2 wherein the cage includes an upper flange extending radially outwardly from the cage side wall and being adapted to rest on the upper edge of the bottle neck.

4. The invention in accordance with claim 3 wherein the flange on the cage includes sealing means for sealing the juncture between the cage flange and the bottle neck.

5. The invention in accordance with claim 1 whereinassociated surfaces of the cowl and cage define locking means for locking the cowl and cage together.

6. The invention in accordance with claim 5 wherein the cowl includes a substantially tubular side wall and a lateral flange extending outwardly from the base of the cowl side-wall and sealing means between and delined by associated surfaces of the cowl and cage for sealing the juncture between such surfaces.

7. The invention in accordance with claim 6 whereinthe tubular side wall of the cowl presents inner surfaces defining the locking means for locking the cowl and cage together.

8. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the means for centering includes projections appearing on both upper and lower sides of the guard plate disc.

9. The invention in accordance with .claim 1 wherein the limiting means includes a centrally located post adapted to engage with the ball when the bottle is inverted to pour the bottle contents and said means for centering include a plurality of projections at the periphery of the disc to cooperate in centering the guard plate in the cowl;

10. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein equal volume is provided on each side of the guard plate disc.

11. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the disc diameter is larger than the diameter of the pouring spout.

12. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein a bottle having a neck mounts said closure, a

locking band securing and sealing the closure to the high density mineral matter has been incorporated.

15. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the sides of the valve seat are tapered at an angle tangent to the surface of the ball in the area of contact of the ball and the seat.

16. The invention in accordance with claim 15 wherein the ball diameter is approximately .460 inches and an included angle between the sides of the valve seat being approximately 40 and the diameter of the seat being approximately .430 inches. 

1. A non-refillable pouring closure for liquor bottles comprising: a valve assembly comprising a ball cage adapted to be associated with the neck of the liquor bottle, said cage having a valve seat, the ball cage including a substantially tubular side wall having a lower laterally and inwardly extending integral flange terminating in an integral upwardly extending inner concentric cylindrical skirt defining said valve seat, said valve seat defining an opening through which the liquor in the bottle is adapted to flow when the bottle is inverted, and a ball in the cage adapted to be seated on the valve seat to close the opening when the bottle is in an upright condition and be unseated when the bottle is inverted to permit flow of liquor through said opening; a cowl associated with the cage and adapted to extend upwardly and outwardly from the neck of the bottle, the cowl having an upper pouring spout having a reduced diameter through which liquor is adapted to be dispensed, the cowl defining an interior space; a guard plate in said space and comprising a disc of predetermined diameter relative to the diameter of the pouring spout and sufficiently smaller relative to certain surfaces of the cowl to permit flow of liquor therebetween when the bottle is inverted, means for centering the guard plate within said space for contributing in providing predetermined volume in the cowl on each side of the guard plate Disc, and limiting means for limiting the movement of the ball in the cage from a seating position and unseated position.
 2. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein a number of ribs extends longitudinally and inwardly from the cage side wall for purposes of regulating the path of travel of the ball.
 3. The invention in accordance with claim 2 wherein the cage includes an upper flange extending radially outwardly from the cage side wall and being adapted to rest on the upper edge of the bottle neck.
 4. The invention in accordance with claim 3 wherein the flange on the cage includes sealing means for sealing the juncture between the cage flange and the bottle neck.
 5. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein associated surfaces of the cowl and cage define locking means for locking the cowl and cage together.
 6. The invention in accordance with claim 5 wherein the cowl includes a substantially tubular side wall and a lateral flange extending outwardly from the base of the cowl side wall and sealing means between and defined by associated surfaces of the cowl and cage for sealing the juncture between such surfaces.
 7. The invention in accordance with claim 6 wherein the tubular side wall of the cowl presents inner surfaces defining the locking means for locking the cowl and cage together.
 8. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the means for centering includes projections appearing on both upper and lower sides of the guard plate disc.
 9. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the limiting means includes a centrally located post adapted to engage with the ball when the bottle is inverted to pour the bottle contents and said means for centering include a plurality of projections at the periphery of the disc to cooperate in centering the guard plate in the cowl.
 10. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein equal volume is provided on each side of the guard plate disc.
 11. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the disc diameter is larger than the diameter of the pouring spout.
 12. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein a bottle having a neck mounts said closure, a locking band securing and sealing the closure to the bottle neck and a closure cap having a linear and being threadedly secured to the closure and having surfaces which engage with the cowl to enhance the seal between surfaces of the cowl and cage and cage and bottle neck and also effecting a seal of the liner across the pouring spout.
 13. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the ball possesses a specific gravity approximately twice that of the liquor.
 14. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the ball is fabricated from a plastic into which high density mineral matter has been incorporated.
 15. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the sides of the valve seat are tapered at an angle tangent to the surface of the ball in the area of contact of the ball and the seat.
 16. The invention in accordance with claim 15 wherein the ball diameter is approximately .460 inches and an included angle between the sides of the valve seat being approximately 40* and the diameter of the seat being approximately .430 inches. 